Context
According to a RAAB’s (Rapid Assessment of Avoidable Blindness) study conducted in 2011 in the Centre Ouest region of Burkina Faso, more than 8% of the population over 50 years is blind (compared to a national prevalence of blindness of 2% for all ages) and more than 17% is visually impaired (compared to a national rate of visual impairment of 4.6% for all ages). This same study shows that nearly 90% of blindness is preventable.
These figures could be explained by an insufficiency of screening campaigns and management of pathologies, qualified human resources, infrastructure and working equipment as well as a low supply of drugs, which are cited in the region's strategic plan as one of the priority health problems.
Supported Project
In Burkina Faso, the L'OCCITANE Foundation supports the NGO Light For The World (LFTW) which supports the Ministry of Health in improving the eye health of the population. The collaboration with this NGO is based on a project whose main objective is to improve the accessibility to quality care for the population of the Centre Ouest region of Burkina Faso.
This project consists essentially of:
- Supporting the development and evaluation of strategic documents to serve as a guide for eye health,
- Strengthening the knowledge of health workers and teachers mainly on the concepts of refractive errors,
- Rehabilitating infrastructures and provide equipment and medication for better intervention,
- Carrying out screening and treatment campaigns in the 7 health centers of the region and also in schools through vision corridors,
- Promoting eye health through public awareness activities.
Some Figures
The goal is to provide comprehensive quality eye care to the entire population of the Centre Ouest Region.
2020 Budget 105,555 euros
2020 Results 46,840 beneficiaries
History of the Partnership
Project supported since 2012
The Foundation has been supporting this project of the NGO Light for The World since 2012. This project, initially designed to strengthen the capacity of the Regional Hospital Center (in the regional capital) in order to offer better quality care to the population, has now been extended to all the health districts of the region. This extension now offers greater accessibility to the populations furthest from the regional center and the most destitute. In addition, this project has innovated by establishing the country's first vision corridors in the region's schools to easily and quickly treat children with visual impairments.
The partnership with the NGO LFTW also led to the development of two strategic plans (national and regional) for eye health. These plans now guide all actions to combat preventable blindness by 2020.
Total Budget 747,792 euros
Total Results 147,763 beneficiaries
Testimonies
"The eye surgery campaigns are activities that allow the poorest populations and those who are farthest from the major health centers to have access to free eye care services. I am very happy, because scratching made me tired. I was scratching very frequently and it hurt. I am happy because I know that the products I got will help me get better."
Harouna Kaboré, care recipient. Harouna and his brother were among the many people who came to take advantage of a free campaign in the region in the hope of finding a solution to their eye problems.
"Before, I had problems with eyelid tearing, for example. After the training, I can do eyelid turnarounds without difficulty and diagnose certain eye diseases."
Daouda Kabré, nurse (training beneficiary). As Head Nurse of Doudou, Daouda meets daily with patients suffering from various ailments, including eye ailments. But at times, he found himself in uncomfortable situations, because it was difficult for him to diagnose the patient's ocular pathology, due to his lack of knowledge in this field. Today, Daouda is very proud to be able to help his patients.
